The Rule is, when a defendant lawyer does not appear for a hearing and the court is satisfied that the summons was dully served, it may pass a showcause order on the defendant. If the defendant does not take any steps to respond to it, the court may pass an order for an ex parte hearing and subsequently give an ex parte decree, in keeping with the provisions of the Civil Procedure Code.

Note ex parte decree is not given easily, the court has to be sure beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant is intentionally not appearing and has full knowledge of the case and date of hearing.